I saw The Killers' opening night at Co-op Live and you'll love the nostalgia and epic Brandon Flowers show

Early in the set, Brandon Flowers declared himself to be the night’s ‘host’, standing behind a huge K on the edge of the stage, similar to how a host would greet someone or how a captain would be behind the wheel of a ship, giving instructions to the sea of fans in the audience. 

Donning a sparkling suit that helped him command attention in a way a magician would, Flowers provided the blueprint of what it takes to be a great frontman. His charisma and energy is off the charts as he bounced and raced around the stage, but he knew exactly when to let the audience take over the show.

For ‘Mr. Brightside’ and ‘Human’ to close the night, Flowers almost played the role of a conductor as he waved his arms around, encouraging the audience to take the lead on the songs. Flowers stopped to take in the moment as the endearing Manchester audience belted out ‘Mr. Brightside’ before closing out the show in red-hot fashion. 

On the rare occasion when the energy dipped in the evening, the frontman knew exactly how to get everyone rocking once again and songs such as ‘Shot at the Night’, ‘Runaways’ and ‘When We Were Young’ inspired singalongs in the crowd. 

Although hearing 23,000 or so Mancunians belting out ‘Mr. Brightside’ is likely the highlight of the evening for many, it was the opening of the show that caught my eye. After performing ‘Read my Mind’, The Killers performed two of their biggest and arguably best hits in ‘Somebody Told Me’ and ‘Spaceman’ to get the audience rocking and to set the stage for a thrilling night. 

Nostalgia was in the air inside the Co-op Live as Flowers and co brought out a trio of classics from their Grammy-nominated debut album ‘Hot Fuss’ in ‘Jenny was a Friend of Mine’, ‘Smile Like You Mean it’ and ‘On Top’.

Seeing lead guitarist and founding member Dave Keuning back on the road full-time with The Killers for the first-time in seven years was a welcome sight, and the band’s energetic performance of ‘The Man’ that saw the audience be showered in pink confetti was a great moment. As was the performance of heartland rock hit ‘A Dustland Fairytale’, which Brandon dedicated to those who had lost a loved one. 

If you haven’t got a ticket to see the Las Vegas four-piece, I very much recommend you do so. You will not regret it one bit.

The Killers setlist at Co-op Live, Manchester on June 18, 2024

• Read My Mind
• Somebody Told Me
• Spaceman
• Jenny Was a Friend of Mine
• Smile Like You Mean It
• Shot at the Night
• Running Towards a Place
• On Top
• The Man
• A Dustland Fairytale
• Be Still
• Runaways
• All These Things That I've Done
• When You Were Young
• Caution
• Dying Breed
• Your Side of Town
• boy
• A Little Respect
• Human
• Mr. Brightside